Parallels
by lunaerum
Summary: A strange phone call from his father sends Tsuna on a journey through different universes, searching for answers as well as his absentee father and missing mother. Now if only he could stop running into alternate versions of his friends ...! AU. All27. Dedicated to draeden over on tumblr!
1. The Phone Call

**Disclaimer:** Don't own anything but the fic idea/writing.

* * *

 **Summary:** After a mysterious phone call from his father that leaves him with more questions than answers, Tsuna reluctantly finds himself on a whirlwind adventure. Promising himself that this would be the last time he follows the whims of his father, Tsuna hurries back to a hometown he hasn't been able to go back to since his mother disappeared – and ends up traveling to alternate universes filled with familiar faces and strange circumstances … All27.

* * *

Alright so I'm not _completely_ happy with my summary, so it might change soon - let me know what you think of it!

This fic is dedicated to my good friend, Mella, who is draeden on tumblr! He's always really supportive and super funny, so I wanted to do something nice for him.

This fic is based loosely on the movie _Parallels_! If you're confused about the alt. universe thing it will allllll make sense eventually. You could also check out the movie if you want!

 **Warnings:** Allusions to violence.

 **Pairings:** Will be All27, hints of 5927 in this chapter. Not only will it be All27, it will be all27 with multiple versions of different characters pining/lusting after Tsuna.

* * *

 **Chapter 1:** _The Phone Call_

* * *

The shrill sound of Tsuna's phone startles him awake at 4:15 AM.

Unsurprisingly, it's dark and for a few moments after he jolts awake, he has no idea what had woken him up. Then the sound of his phone registers in his mind and he scrambles for it, nearly falling off of the bed as he does so.

He turns it on silent with a sigh of relief and all is quiet. Tsuna takes a second to squint at his surroundings, no longer as disoriented and half-asleep.

He's half on and half off the bed, with the blanket tangled around his legs. His homework is scattered across the floor – he remembers falling asleep doing statistics homework, homework that was already late and needed to be completed today, or his professor (one Renato Sinclair, who weirdly preferred to be called Reborn) really _would_ kill him. Tsuna makes a mental note to complete it before class if possible.

And Tsuna is in the process of staring blearily at his phone and vowing the person who woke him up at _four_ o'clock in the morning would slowly _die_ when he catches something move out of the corner of his eye. His heart beats faster, his half-asleep brain somehow coming up with a million things that shape could possibly be, stopping at vampire when he realizes –

"Hayato-kun! You scared me!"

"… sorry, Tsuna." Gokudera says sheepishly as he enters Tsuna's room, walking hesitantly towards the other boy – close enough for the light from Tsuna's phone to illuminate his friend's rather handsome features. "Who was calling you? Was it that baseball idiot?"

Tsuna sighs, heart clenching at the reminder of Yamamoto. It's been awhile since they've talked. Tsuna misses him. He reaches to turn his bedside lamp on, so that he and Gokudera aren't conversing in the near dark like animals, pushing aside those melancholy thoughts. "I _told_ you not to call Takeshi that. You might as well come sit down – I don't think either of us are going to get much sleep after this." Tsuna punctuates his remark with a pat to his messy bed.

Gokudera grunts (Tsuna doesn't think he's _ever_ going to get Gokudera to agree to be civil with Yamamoto) and acquiesces, tentatively approaching Tsuna's bed with curiously pink cheeks. "Who called you?" Gokudera repeats his question, sitting on the edge of Tsuna's bed.

"Oh!" Tsuna says, just now realizing he hadn't answered Gokudera's question. "I don't know. I just put my phone on silent. I didn't actually check to see who called."

"Maybe you should," Gokudera says quietly. "If someone's calling you at four in the morning it's probably important."

"You're right," Tsuna says, equally as quiet. "Stay here? If it's bad news I –"

"Of course," Gokudera scoots closer, placing a hand on Tsuna's arm. He looks incredibly earnest and incredibly handsome in the dim light from Tsuna's bedside lamp. "Of course I will."

"Okay," Tsuna mutters. "Here goes nothing –" And he unlocks his phone, searching his recent calls for the person who had woken him up. He frowns when he realizes who it was. "It's just my father." His father who hadn't called in a year.

Not since his mother was declared dead by the police after being missing for a month.

"Well," Gokudera says slowly, knowing how distant Tsuna's relationship with his father was. "Did he leave a message?"

"… yeah. He – he did. Let me – let me listen to it." And Tsuna clicks on his most recent voicemail and presses his phone to his ear, averting eye-contact with Gokudera. The topic of his father brought back many, many emotions – not all of them bad, but it always left him feeling vulnerable. He didn't want Gokudera seeing him like this.

As the message plays, Tsuna can almost _feel_ the color drain from his face, the way that his hands begin shaking, the way his hearts starts beating faster. By the time the message ends, he almost feels like he's been punched in the gut.

"Tsuna? Tsuna?!" Distantly, Tsuna can hear Gokudera frantically calling out his name, inching closer so that he can press both hands to Tsuna's shoulders, likely hoping to jerk Tsuna out of his panic. "Tsuna what's wrong? What happened?"

The phone slips out of Tsuna's lax grip. He doesn't answer for a moment. He raises his head to make eye-contact with Gokudera, feeling drained, worried, and _exhausted_. "I have … I have to go home. I have to get back to Namimori."

* * *

Voicemail received at 4:17 AM.

" _Tsuna – Tsuna, it's me. You need to come back to Namimori. I can't explain –"_

The sound of gunshots cuts Tsuna's father off. Someone starts screaming. Someone curses.

" _I can't explain right now. You need to come back to Namimori – there's something hidden in the house for you. Go to the abandoned building in Kokuyo Land as fast as you can. It will make sense_ _once you get there. I need you to do this for me."_

More gunshots. More screaming.

" _Be careful who you trust. Be careful –"_

* * *

In the end, Gokudera doesn't let Tsuna leave immediately after hearing the message. He'd calmly listened to Tsuna's stuttered explanation and – ever the voice of reason – told Tsuna that leaving without packing or notifying teachers he would be doing so was probably a bad idea.

After the hysteria had faded, Tsuna reluctantly agreed.

Which is why, after receiving that, quite frankly, _terrifying_ voicemail, Tsuna was doing his statistics homework.

Reborn was the only professor that didn't accept emails from his students and Tsuna was _abysmal_ at phone call etiquette, so after sending off emails to his four other professors – citing a family emergency – Tsuna started on his math homework.

Because – Tsuna knew how Reborn worked. If Tsuna showed up to explain why he was going to be missing the next few classes and _didn't_ have his already late homework ready to turn in, Reborn would somehow convince him to stay and complete it. And although his statistics professor wasn't _unpleasant_ to look at (and by that, Tsuna means that he may have thought about how soft Reborn's skin must be and how his lips never seemed to be chapped and how his voice was always so deep and smooth), Tsuna had no intention of staying in the man's presence longer than necessary.

By six-thirty, Tsuna's completed the last assignment for Reborn and one of his professors has responded to his email, wishing him good luck. He doesn't reply back, but he finishes reading the email with a smile. Luce – his Literature professor – is one of his favorites, always kind and understanding. Although he didn't think she'd respond with anything but nice words, getting at least one empathetic email from a professor releases some of the stress and anxiety that's been building up since he had listened to his father's voicemail.

Unsurprisingly, once Tsuna notifies Gokudera that he's to be leaving soon to catch Reborn before his first class, Gokudera volunteers to go with him, explaining that he too had to see his professors. Which was unlikely, given that it wasn't even seven o'clock in the morning, but Tsuna didn't feel like arguing. If Gokudera wanted to walk him to school, it would be impossible to change his mind.

Still. Tsuna had to try.

"You know I can get to school on my own, right?" Tsuna asks, more amused than mad. He was far too used to Gokudera's overprotective tendencies to get offended now. "You don't have to walk me all the way there."

Gokudera waits until he's locked the door behind them to answer. "It's fine!" He insists. "I have to talk to my professors anyway."

Tsuna smiles at the flimsy excuse, but doesn't argue anymore. "Well, we better get to school then, huh?"

* * *

Reborn's office is empty.

Feeling somewhat defeated – the man is _always_ early – Tsuna decides that he should just leave his homework on the man's desk and write a note explaining why he's going to be absent for the next couple of days.

Although this would have worked _much_ , much better in person, this will have to do. He needs to get back to Namimori as soon as possible.

And he's halfway done writing his note sitting in Reborn's mysteriously unlocked office when he hears –

"And _what_ , pray tell, are you doing in _my_ office, Sawada Tsunayoshi?"

And Tsuna jumps, nearly scattering his homework for the second time in three hours, turning towards the sound of that voice. Even at seven in the morning, Reborn looks impeccable in his suit that seems much too expensive given the salary at Tsuna's tiny college can't be all that much.

"I was – I was just. Um, I was writing a note for you? I won't be here for the next couple of weeks. Family emergency." Tsuna pauses when a strange look passes over Reborn's face, though in a second it's vanished and Tsuna supposes he must have imagined such a look. "H-here's all my homework," Tsuna mutters, tossing the half-finished note in the trash and handing the stack of homework to his professor. For a moment, Tsuna and Reborn just stare at each other, Tsuna awkwardly wondering if he should say anything else and then the moment passes and the strange tension fades, prompting Tsuna to leave.

And leave he does, not noticing how beady black eyes follow him all the way until he turns a corner and disappears from sight.

* * *

Reborn counts out fifteen minutes and deems that nice enough length of time that if he were to leave, Tsuna wouldn't see him do so. He tosses Tsuna's homework onto his ornate, handcrafted desk with a with little dramatic flair, too engrossed in his thoughts to do so.

"Family emergency …?" Reborn asks of his empty office as he gathers up all of the necessary materials for his leave from classes. It takes him longer than he would like to do so and by the time he's finished packing, his frustration with the situation clearly shows in the way he tosses papers to the floor, pulls books of the shelves. If he didn't have such control over his emotions, he would _scream_. " _Dammit_ , Iemitsu," he says through gritted teeth. "– it's too early … What are you thinking? What the _hell_ are you planning?"

And though he would _love_ to stew in his anger and perhaps even devise the particular ways he love harming his idiot colleague, he _can't_.

He has to get to Namimori before Tsuna does.

* * *

Fin ... (for now)

* * *

The next chapter will be Tsuna and Reborn arriving in Namimori, a visit from an old friend, and the beginning of Tsuna's adventure!

* * *

You can follow me on tumblr at lunaerum! A link is in my profile bio! You can ask me about this fic and others.

Please R&R! I would love to know your thoughts on this idea!


	2. The Return of an Old Friend

**Disclaimer:** Don't own anything but the fic idea/writing.

* * *

 **Summary:** A strange phone call from his father sends Tsuna on a journey through different universes, searching for answers as well as his absentee father and missing mother. Now if only he could stop running into alternate versions of his friends ...! All27

* * *

I changed the summary! Let me know what you think.

This fic is dedicated to my good friend, Mella, who is draeden on tumblr! He's always really supportive and super funny, so I wanted to do something nice for him.

 **Warnings:** N/A for this chapter.

 **Pairings:** Will be all27, hints of 5927 in this chapter. Not only will it be all27, it will be all27 with multiple versions of different characters pining/lusting after Tsuna.

* * *

 **Chapter 2:** _The Return of an Old Friend_

* * *

As soon as Tsuna rounds a corner and is out of Reborn's sight, his calm facade collapses and he crashes into a wall, knees weak. Although he had a healthy appreciation of the man's face, he still scared Tsuna to no end. It had taken almost everything he had not to flinch multiple times while talking to the man, and he _still_ stuttered! And even though Reborn is scary, that didn't mean that Tsuna didn't want to impress him – but now the man probably thought he was stupid or something.

 _Ugh_. Tsuna's life _sucks_.

Determined not to sink into a bout of self-depreciation, Tsuna rights himself and begins walking once more, checking his phone for the time when he realizes there are no clocks nearby.

7:40 AM.

If Gokudera finished up in the next few minutes, then Tsuna would be able to get home in 15, pack, then run off to the nearby train station to get on the 8:30 train to Namimori. It's in the middle of his mental planning that a text comes in from Gokudera, and curious, he opens it – frantic thoughts of planning pushed to the side in favor of his newest text.

From Gokudera: _go on without me, I'll be home soon_

Oh.

Tsuna tries not to feel disappointed at that.

After all, maybe Gokudera really _did_ need to come to school for something. Maybe he wasn't just being overprotective, walking Tsuna to school. Tsuna has _no_ right to feel upset over not walking home with Gokudera. He's given more kindness to Tsuna than he truly deserves – it would be selfish to demand more.

So instead of asking why Gokudera is staying behind – because if he wanted Tsuna to know, surely he would have just told him, Tsuna texts the other back, half on auto-pilot.

To Gokudera: _okay, see you when you get home :-)_

And he walks home, trying not to think about how Gokudera's hand always brushes his ever so slightly when they walk and how the ten minute walk home would have been a lot less lonely had his friend been walking beside him.

When Tsuna gets home, he pushes all thoughts of Reborn and Gokudera aside and tries to focus on packing.

He shouldn't need much, just a couple of changes of clothes – _oh_ and some underwear and socks, can't forget that. He shoves his wallet into his backpack as well, not knowing if he'd need it, but knowing he should probably pack it anyway.

By the time he's done packing, his room looks like a tornado has hit it – with clothes he decided he doesn't want to take strewn across the floor, textbooks shoved to the side, the bedding half on the floor – and Gokudera still isn't home.

Tsuna sighs and checks his phone.

8:05 AM.

As much as part of Tsuna wants to stay and say goodbye to Gokudera face to face – because his father is involved in some really dangerous stuff if the sound of that voicemail is anything to go by and he might not be coming back – he really, really should get going.

He debates on calling and leaving a message, or just texting – and after a moment, he decides on texting. After all, if Gokudera is talking with a teacher ( _or maybe even a girlfriend_ , his traitorous mind whispers) he wouldn't want to interrupt that with a call.

Now, he just has to decide what to say.

 _'I'm leaving'_ sounds too abrupt, so does every possible message Tsuna thinks up and Tsuna spends an absolutely absurd amount of time debating on what to say when he checks the time and finds _five minutes_ have passed.

Ridiculous.

Needing to leave, but knowing he should send Gokudera a text lest the other boy come home to an empty apartment and freak out, Tsuna quickly types out a brief message, letting Gokudera know he's leaving and to call if he has any questions. And just when Tsuna's about to press send – Gokudera bursts into the apartment, red-faced and breathing heavily. It looks like he ran the whole way from school to their apartment.

"Good," Gokudera says, "You haven't left, I was worried–"

"I wouldn't leave without saying goodbye," Tsuna picks at a loose string on his backpack strap, too embarrassed to tell Gokudera just how long he's deliberated on what to say to the other boy.

"I know, but I'm glad you didn't leave yet." Gokudera smiles, green eyes looking even brighter. With his silver hair, smoking habit, and somewhat questionable fashion sense (today, he was wearing a muscle shirt with a skull motif, a leather jacket, and jeans – an outfit that garnered some disapproving looks) some would immediately peg the boy as a delinquent, but when Gokudera smiles, Tsuna thinks he looks like an _angel._ "I thought I would be too late."

Tsuna frowns. "Too late for what?" Had something happened? What did Gokudera mean by that?

Gokudera blinks, smile dimming a little bit. "I'm going with you. That's why I went with you this morning to talk to my professors–"

"I thought that was an excuse!" Tsuna sputters, pushing aside the warm feeling that Gokudera's words brought on.

"No – I well. I couldn't just leave you to go alone, not after hearing what your dad said over the phone. And I would've been here earlier, but–" And here, Gokudera scowls, twisting his features into something mean and dark, reminding Tsuna that the Gokudera he sees isn't the one everyone else does. It's not as scary as it seems. More humbling than anything. "My stupid physics professor made me take the midterm early. Did you want to make the 8:30 train?"

The questions jerks Tsuna out of his thoughts – more his admiration for Gokudera's smarts (and his looks, if Tsuna is being perfectly honest) and he gapes at Gokudera, probably looking like an ugly fish. "Huh? Oh!" Gokudera is talking about the 8:30 train to Namimori. "Yeah, but we can just take the nine o'clock one since you still need to pack. That's fine!"

"Hmm? No, I already packed," Gokudera says, shoving errant strands of silver hair out of his face. "I'll be right back." And Gokudera hurries to his room after a through once over of Tsuna, probably checking to make sure the other boy wouldn't leave without him.

And Tsuna – well, Tsuna's a bit awestruck. He had known that Gokudera considered him a good friend, but he never thought that he would miss school for Tsuna or that he would've already packed for a trip Tsuna didn't beg him to go on. Between that and the revelation that Gokudera had finished his physics midterm and managed to talk to all six of his other professors in the time it took Tsuna to talk to one and make his way back home and pack, Tsuna was feeling a little pole-axed.

Gokudera really _was_ amazing.

True to his word, Gokudera is back in just a few moments, bag slung onto his shoulders, keys to their apartment in hand. "You ready?"

And Tsuna smiles, a shy hesitant sort of smile, full of warmth and love – especially after the revelation of how much Gokudera cared for him – and says, "Of course."

(Curiously enough, Gokudera turns bright red at the sight of Tsuna's smile and fumbles with his keys, nearly dropping them.

 _Weird_.)

* * *

They arrive just in time to hop on the 8:30 train and unsurprisingly, there's barely anyone on the train. Both Tsuna and Gokudera sit and stow their bags, having just enough time to get settled before the train begins moving.

Exhaustion settles over Tsuna almost immediately after sitting down.

Between waking up at four in the morning and listening to a terrifying voicemail that kept him up and wouldn't allow him to go to sleep, to finishing all of his math homework, to talking to Reborn, then packing – Tsuna has been going all day and now that he's finally on his way home, it's finally taking its toll on him. Gokudera is talking about something or other and Tsuna can tell that the subject excites him and he tries to follow along, though after a while all of the words blur together and he can hardly keep his eyes open.

Barely ten minutes into the train ride, Tsuna's eyes close and he drifts into a dreamless sleep, the deep register of Gokudera's voice lulling him to rest.

* * *

"-suna! Tsuna, wake up, we're there!"

Tsuna groans and burrows his face further into his pillow. "Five more minutes, 'atayo ..."

Tsuna hears Gokudera sputter, as he sometimes does, though it's unusually close. Gokudera doesn't normally come into his room to wake him, and often just calls through the door.

"Tsuna!" Gokudera's voice is high and a bit panicked. Tsuna wonders why that is and thinks that once he wakes up, maybe he'll investigate.

But right now, sleep. Tsuna cuddles even closer to his weirdly warm, but very comfortable pillow deciding that five more minutes couldn't hurt anyone.

"T-T-Tsuna! We need to get off the train! We've arrived in Namimori!"

Namimori? But why would they be in Namimori? Their university was an hour and a half away and –

Oh.

Oh, _right._

Tsuna's dad called him and told him to come back to Namimori. That it was important.

Tsuna's eyes snap open, blinking the last vestiges of sleep away – and his cheeks start to burn when he takes stock of the situation.

The warmth he was so enamored with turned out not to be some sort of battery powered pillow, but Gokudera, whose shoulder and neck (that Tsuna was laying on) was surprisingly comfortable. Tsuna was half on, half off the other boy's lap – and for once, Tsuna was almost grateful for his short stature, because he fit _perfectly_ against Gokudera.

And then as quickly as he has that thought he pushes it away and scrambles to stand. In the past, Tsuna has developed an admiration of his friends that almost borders on romantic, though he'd heard sometimes that deep platonic love can mimic romantic love, so he makes sure to never let on what he's feeling because not only is he _positive_ that his friends would never feel the same way, but he's not even completely sure what he's feeling.

So Tsuna locks those feelings away, does his best not to think about them, and asks – inexplicably breathless – "Ready to go?"

And Gokudera blinks – Tsuna can almost see him visibly shake himself out of whatever thoughts he was having – before smiling at Tsuna, albeit somewhat nervously. "O-of course, Tsuna!" Then he pauses, smile dimming. "Where are we going?"

And despite himself, Tsuna laughs.

* * *

They end up walking to Tsuna's childhood home, though their walk is much more subdued now than it was to their university. Though he had felt remarkably light-hearted after waking – enough that he had laughed at Gokudera's adorable question – now, he's too consumed by the violent possibilities of the future. It really sounded like Tsuna's father was involved in something nasty and just by calling him, Tsuna's dad had gotten him involved – but was it really right to get Gokudera involved? Maybe he shouldn't have let Gokudera come. Tsuna was being selfish and he should've made Gokudera stay home, maybe –

"Tsuna–?"

The call of his name drags him from his thoughts quite abruptly and Tsuna startles, nearly tripping on the pavement. Gokudera steadies him with a worried look and together, they both turn to see who had called out to Tsuna.

It's –

It's _Yamamoto_.

* * *

Fin ... (for now)

* * *

Alright, this chapter got longer than I wanted it, so the next chapter will be Yamamoto and Tsuna talking and the start of Tsuna's adventure!

* * *

You can follow me on tumblr at lunaerum! A link is in my profile bio! You can ask me about this fic and others.

Please R&R! I would love to know your thoughts on this idea!


	3. The Cube

**Disclaimer:** Don't own anything but the fic idea/writing.

* * *

 **Summary:** A strange phone call from his father sends Tsuna on a journey through different universes, searching for answers as well as his absentee father and missing mother. Now if only he could stop running into alternate versions of his friends ...! AU. All27.

* * *

This fic is dedicated to my good friend, Mella, who is draeden on tumblr! He's always really supportive and super funny, so I wanted to do something nice for him.

 **Warnings:** N/A for this chapter.

 **Pairings:** Will be All27, hints of 5927 and 1827 in this chapter. Not only will it be All27, it will be all27 with multiple versions of different characters pining/lusting after Tsuna.

* * *

 **Chapter 3:** _The Cube_

* * *

Yamamoto and Tsuna met when they were six.

A red and orange ball was one of the only toys that Tsuna's dad sent back for Tsuna. He had other better toys that he had picked out himself, but the sight of Tsuna playing with that red and orange ball made her really, really happy so he played with it every day.

It was a Thursday when Tsuna loses that ball.

His mom hadn't noticed yet and although Tsuna knew she wouldn't be disappointed, she would be so _sad_. Just the thought of his mom being anything less than super-duper happy makes him start to cry, which only gets worse when his frantic searching comes up empty.

After a fruitless search of his entire backyard, Tsuna sits on the curb outside of his house, head in hands. He contemplates running away before his mom discovers the missing ball when pair of legs wearing grass-stained jeans stop in front of him and a shadow obscures his view.

"Is this your ball?" A voice says above him, a tiny lisp slurring the words.

Hope rises in Tsuna's chest and he wipes his eyes free of tears. Could this person really have found his ball? He looks up, blinking when the glare of the sun is too harsh.

Then his vision clears.

And he falls in love.

… with the boy's brand new action figure.

* * *

It's that Thursday that a wonderful, beautiful, amazing friendship blossoms. It turns out the boy's name is Yamamoto Takeshi and he's not like any of the other kids Tsuna has met – he actually _wants_ to be around Tsuna! It's such a novel feeling that for months after befriending the other boy, he regularly asks if Yamamoto is _sure_ that he wants Tsuna as a friend.

And Yamamoto's answer is _always_ , "Of course!"

They get through grade school and middle school together, just the two of them. Unsurprisingly, Yamamoto is extremely popular, but no one is able to penetrate Yamamoto and Tsuna's friendship and even get half as close to either boy as the two boys themselves are.

Then Gokudera comes along.

Gokudera Hayato arrives in their last year of middle school with a bang. His initial dislike of Tsuna quickly abated the first time he saw the boy's smile and eventually Tsuna had two best friends instead of just one (though, strangely, neither of Tsuna's best friends were friends with each other).

It was different, and at times _trying_ , being friends with people that are such complete opposites, but Tsuna makes it work. And life isn't perfect, but he wouldn't trade it for the world.

And then his mom disappears.

It's the summer after his last year of high school and his mom had gone for groceries one day and had never come back. It takes three months for the police to declare her dead after exhausting every possible lead and something in Tsuna dies when they make the visit to tell him.

Suddenly, Tsuna can't stand to be in Namimori anymore.

So he leaves.

Gokudera follows.

But Yamamoto can't.

He's anchored to Namimori in a way that Tsuna no longer is and although it hurts to have to leave his first best friend behind, they promise to stay in touch.

They don't.

* * *

It's been two weeks since the last stilted text conversation between Tsuna and Yamamoto when, due to his father's voicemail, Tsuna comes back to Namimori and Yamamoto calls out to him.

Two months since their last phone call.

A year since they've seen each other in person.

Yamamoto is taller than Tsuna remembers and his hair is shorter. He's holding a plastic bag filled with what looks like snacks and his grip on the handle tightens before going worryingly lax. His expression is one part surprise and one part devastation.

"T-Takeshi –" Tsuna wants _so_ badly to reach out and touch Yamamoto, maybe even _hug_ him – but he's not sure that the contact would even be welcome. He's not even sure if Yamamoto likes him anymore.

Wouldn't be surprising.

Tsuna hasn't been a good friend to him for a long time.

"It's you … I thought I was imagining – " Yamamoto's grip on the plastic bag tightens. His eyes are dark, hungry. He's staring at Tsuna like he's an oasis in a barren desert – his gaze feels like a heavy weight.

Tsuna feels the same way. No matter how much he stares at Yamamoto, it won't be enough. He's missed the other boy so, _so_ much and he finds himself desperate for the little details he'd forgotten since the last time they'd seen each other, like the way Yamamoto held himself, or the sharp line of his jaw. "I – I would've texted you, but everything happened so _fast_ ," Tsuna says, distressed – angry at himself – how could he forget to tell Yamamoto that he was coming back in town? How had their once-close friendship turned into _this_?

"Yeah." There's something wrong with Yamamoto's tone and Tsuna wants to _cry_. "I can tell." His stare shifts from Tsuna to a scowling Gokudera, who is standing just a step behind Tsuna, to his left. The implication is clear: Yamamoto doesn't think Tsuna values his friendship as much as Gokudera's. "What brings you back to Namimori?" Yamamoto smiles, but it's a brittle, broken smile – like Yamamoto can't imagine Tsuna coming back and wanting to see him. It's absurd, because Tsuna knows that if Yamamoto had even _hinted_ that he wanted to see Tsuna, he would've come back – or at least met Yamamoto halfway. But Yamamoto never hinted at it and Tsuna _knows_ he ruined their friendship with his distance and Yamamoto probably hates the fact that he ran into Tsuna and has to play nice with him.

Tsuna wrings his hands, not sure how to answer the question. "It's – it's dangerous. I – "

"It's _what?_ " Yamamoto asks.

Tsuna blinks. The tone of Yamamoto's voice is really very nostalgic, bringing back memories of all of the times during school an incredulous (and protective) Yamamoto would ask what Tsuna was doing and _why_.

"It's … dangerous?" Tsuna tries again.

"He's here," Yamamoto nods at Gokudera. "He knows what's happening."

Here, Tsuna blinks at Yamamoto and turns toward Gokudera in the space between one breath and the next. "I was thinking about that. I mean, Hayato-kun, you shouldn't miss school for this and if it turns out my dad is involved in what I think he's involved in, I don't want to get you caught up in it. I think you should maybe go –"

"No." Gokudera cuts Tsuna off, scowling at Yamamoto and a gawking passerby before turning back towards Tsuna. "No, absolutely not. I'm not going to leave you. You said you heard _gunshots_ on the phone –"

"Wait, wait, _wait._ Gunshots?"

Tsuna and Gokudera both turn back towards Yamamoto, who looks just _slightly_ murderous. " _Gunshots_ , Tsuna?"

" … m-maybe." Tsuna mumbles, gripping the hem of his pullover with sweaty hands, not making eye-contact with Gokudera or Yamamoto.

There's a pause here. Tsuna's heart hammers in his chest. Would this be the final straw for Yamamoto? Would he finally deem Tsuna more trouble than he's worth? Or had he already?

"Okay." Yamamoto hefts his plastic bag over his shoulder with one hand and searches in his pockets with his other. Tsuna doesn't look up, ready for rejection. "I need to know the full story."

At first the words don't register, but when they do – when the realization hits Tsuna that Yamamoto hasn't given up on Tsuna and still cares – the brightest, widest smile stretches across his lips and he feels almost dizzy with happiness. Yamamoto is smiling too and this smile is less brittle and much more beautiful than the last.

"Okay." Tsuna says. "But we should probably go somewhere private."

* * *

The three of them walk the rest of the way to Tsuna's childhood home.

It's smaller than he remembers and looks almost dilapidated. It's just another reminder that his mother is dead – she never would have let the dust collect on every possible surface in the house. He's almost surprised it hasn't been broken into or something like that. Maybe seeing the inside destroyed would have been better than walking into a house where nothing had changed – nothing except the dust. The onslaught of memories – of his mom cooking, kissing his forehead, crying when he got his first perfect exam – is almost painful, but he manages to push them to the side with a tremulous breath.

"S-sorry about the mess. It's – it's been awhile since –" Tsuna cuts himself off, because of grief, but because there's something _glowing_ on the dining room table. Beside him, Yamamoto and Gokudera have clearly misunderstood why he stopped speaking, inching closer in an attempt to comfort him. While sweet, it's not really what Tsuna wanted. "What is that? Why is it on the table?"

From where Yamamoto and Gokudera are almost touching him, Tsuna can feel them jump, clearly not expecting the contraption any more than him. Tsuna even makes to walk towards it, though Yamamoto and Gokudera stop him before he takes his second step.

"It might be dangerous." Yamamoto says and his grip only tightens on Tsuna's arm when he tries to move again.

"It could be a bomb." Gokudera's glare at Yamamoto over Tsuna's head shows how much he likes agreeing with Yamamoto, but he too tightens his grip on Tsuna's shirt.

Tsuna scoffs, trying to hide just how _elated_ he is. Of course, he's rather annoyed that Yamamoto and Gokudera are being overprotective, but it's so reminiscent of their high school years it has him feeling nostalgic and it gives him the tiniest bit of hope that Yamamoto doesn't hate him after all. Still, that overprotectiveness is preventing him from investigating the glowing contraption, so he brushes his best friends' hands off of his person and walks to the table.

Unsurprisingly, Yamamoto and Gokudera follow just a half step behind him, more cautious than Tsuna, who's just curious.

It's … a glowing cube.

Sitting dead center on the dining room table, its surface is sleek and matte black. It has more buttons than Tsuna can make sense of and they're all glowing a neon blue, pulsing brighter and dimmer to an unknown pattern.

Before Gokudera or Yamamoto can stop him, Tsuna reaches out to touch the biggest, circular topmost button. The machine hums, warming at his touch and begins to vibrate. Startled by the reaction, Tsuna jerks his hand away and takes a half a step backwards – right into Yamamoto, who immediately pushes Tsuna behind him when the machine starts to get louder.

The machine's vibrations slow and Tsuna squints at the machine when it looks as if it's getting bigger – wondering if he's imagining it.

He's not.

But the machine isn't just getting bigger – it's opening up too, blooming like a flower until it's lying flat on the table, like some sort of futuristic tablet. Despite the machine opening up like something out of a science fiction movie, Tsuna still isn't prepared when the former cube begins to _speak_.

" _Fingerprint analysis confirmed."_ A monotonous computerized voice comes from tablet. _"Welcome, Sawada Tsunayoshi: Designation O27. You have_ one _pending message."_

"H-how does it know my name?" Tsuna looks to Yamamoto and Gokudera, clearly spooked – and although his friends obviously don't know the answer, judging by their expression – they don't like it either.

More than that, how does a strange cube turned tablet that somehow knows his name have a message for him?

Curious, but knowing he should probably be careful, Tsuna inches out from behind Yamamoto and slowly approaches the table – ignoring Gokudera frantic sputtering to his right. The tablet is somehow bigger than the cube and looks sort of like something he could buy at an electronic store – except for the fact that it had been a cube not five minutes before.

The display isn't anything special. It looks like a standard lock screen, displaying the time and the date. The message notification glows a bright blue and hesitantly, remembering what happened the last time Tsuna touched this strange object, swipes at the notification.

For a moment, nothing happens.

Then instead of a recording or even a _video_ – a blue light erupts out of the tablet and transforms into his father right in front of his eyes. And it's a very good thing the tablet doesn't expect any sort of response from him because all he can do is stare dumbly at the holographic image of his father peering seriously at him.

" _Tsuna."_ The holograph says. " _I'll be calling you as soon as possible, but there are some things I can't trust to happen over phone. I know this must seem strange to you, it will all make sense soon. I need you to go the place you know as Kokuyo Land. The exact coordinates are embedded in this message. Be careful. Trust no one. Nothing is as it seems. There are files hidden in this message that you will be able to access once you attach the e-pad to the mainframe. A timer will appear on the pad once this message is completed – you need to get to the coordinates before it runs out. I wish I didn't have to drag you into this, but I can't do this alone anymore. Be careful. Please. Be careful."_

The message ends.

Tsuna feels a little pole-axed.

He almost wants to write it off as a joke – but he'd never seen his father like that before. Unlike the voicemail, with the holograph, Tsuna was able to see every expression, was able to see just how serious his father was.

He wasn't anything like the, quite frankly _deadbeat_ , erratic, never serious father Tsuna remembered. The holograph showed regret, sadness, seriousness – all things Tsuna thought his father wasn't capable of.

That's why he knew it wasn't a joke.

Well. That and the weird, futuristic technology.

Tsuna pushes those thoughts away with a shake of his head, turning back towards his two best friends. "He's right, you know. It's probably going to be really dangerous. I don't want you two to get hurt."

"And let you face this alone?" Yamamoto crosses his arms and levels Tsuna with a look.

"As much as I hate to agree with _him_ ," Gokudera glares at Yamamoto, who just smiles back at him, although the smile looks more like grimace. "He's right. Even if you try to make us leave, we'd just follow you."

Tsuna ducks his head at that and thinks for a moment how lucky he is to have these two as his friends. "Well. There's only one thing to do then." And then without waiting for a reply, Tsuna says, "We have to get to Kokuyo Land as soon as possible."

* * *

Fin ... (for now)

* * *

The next chapter will have Tsuna, Yamamoto, and Gokudera travel through an alternate universe and meeting with some familiar faces ...

* * *

You can follow me on tumblr at lunaerum! A link is in my profile bio! You can ask me about this fic and others.

Please R&R! I would love to know your thoughts on this idea!


	4. Kokuyo Land

**Disclaimer:** Don't own anything but the fic idea/writing.

* * *

 **Summary:** A strange phone call from his father sends Tsuna on a journey through different universes, searching for answers as well as his absentee father and missing mother. Now if only he could stop running into alternate versions of his friends ...! AU. All27.

* * *

This fic is dedicated to my good friend, Mella, who is draeden on tumblr! He's always really supportive and super funny, so I wanted to do something nice for him.

Also, special shout-out to my GF (nekonekonomi over on tumblr), who is the best girlfriend and person in the world. Thank you so much for all that you do for me, but especially thank you for listening to me ramble about my fics all the time! Love you!

 **Warnings:** N/A for this chapter.

 **Pairings:** Will be All27, hints of 5927 and 8027 in this chapter. Not only will it be All27, it will be all27 with multiple versions of different characters pining/lusting after Tsuna.

Okay so. This chapter is way longer than I thought it would be. But I said I would get to an alternate universe this chapter and by golly, that's what I did. Unbeta'd, like always. Any mistakes are mine! I will probably revist this chapter later, but I just want to get it posted for now.

* * *

 **Chapter 4:** _Kokuyo Land_

Please R&R if you liked the fic!

* * *

Kokuyo Land has been derelict and abandoned for as long as Tsuna can remember.

The name implies it was probably some sort of amusement park, but the one time Tsuna had gone, it was well after it had closed. There was overgrown landscaping and the only building still standing seemed strangely eerie.

It was on the rare occasion that Tsuna's father was home that the man decided to take Tsuna out for some father–son bonding. Halfway through their meal, Tsuna's father had gotten a call on his cell phone – one that had immediately changed the atmosphere. As quickly as he could, Tsuna's father had paid for their meal (and at nine, Tsuna didn't understand why they had gone out to eat when his mother's cooking was not only better, it was _free_ ) and ushered Tsuna outside, where a black, shiny car was waiting for him.

Tsuna's father had tried to keep the atmosphere light, though, with every passing moment, he got tenser and tenser as they approached their destination. They arrived at Kokuyo Land within thirty minutes and when Tsuna tried to follow his father and the driver outside of the car, his father had placed him back inside of the car with a strained smile and made Tsuna promise to stay put.

Confused, Tsuna had.

The visit hadn't taken long and his father returned to the car worried and almost angry. Tsuna had stared out of the window at the run–down building as it got smaller and smaller, trying to figure out what was so important about it – but in his nine-year-old mind, Tsuna could find nothing. That night, when Tsuna's father mentioned that they had gone by that part of town, his mother had looked worried, though Tsuna didn't really understand what was so scary about a dirty building that was almost falling apart.

The very next day, Tsuna's father was called away on business. Seemingly unrelated, transfer student Byakuran Gesso was reported missing, though a persistent rumor insisted he had just gone back home.

That was ten years ago.

Tsuna had never seen Byakuran again and neither had he thought about Kokuyo Land since the incident.

Until now.

* * *

The timer says they have an hour and fifteen minutes to get to Kokuyo Land.

Tsuna keeps glancing down what his father had called an _e–pad_ , anxiety slowly rising as the number counts down.

After Yamamoto and Gokudera had declared their intent to stay with Tsuna despite the danger and Tsuna suggesting they leave for Kokuyo Land, he was left with a dilemma.

What _exactly_ to do with the tablet.

Was it supposed to be folded back up into a cube? Was he supposed to shove it into his backpack?

In the end, Tsuna decided just to pick it up and carry it. That way he could see the timer as it ticked down – though it did have the adverse effect of inducing anxiety when he sees the numbers ticking down.

They had left the house soon after Tsuna grabbed the tablet and he had almost just left the house unlocked – because there was nothing really of value in there, but Gokudera had _insisted_ that Tsuna locked his house back up. Something about it not being safe and intruders hiding in Tsuna's closet to spirit him away.

It sounds bad, but Tsuna had tuned his friend out within the first five minutes of his paranoid lecture. In an effort to get him to stop, Tsuna had just locked the door. It didn't matter to him either way, but it sure mattered to Gokudera, so Tsuna had done it. He's kind of a pushover when it comes to his friends. He's lucky they've never noticed.

After locking up the house, the three of them decided to just walk to Kokuyo Land, since Namimori wasn't the big of a town and they had over an hour to get there.

Now, Tsuna's kind of regretting that decision. After being apart from Yamamoto for so long, he had sort of forgotten how tense it can get between him and Gokudera, how they never really have _conversations_ , just pointed barbs and insults.

"Tsuna," Yamamoto starts, looking over Tsuna, who shifts his gaze from the tablet to his first best friend. "Have you been eating oka –"

"Idiot!" Seeing Gokudera so enraged is just another reminder that the sweet, gentle Gokudera that Tsuna sees isn't the one that everyone else does. Instead of that soft expression Tsuna often finds aimed at him, Gokudera just really looks ready to fight, with a snarl on his face and his hands balled into a fist. "As if I'd let Tsuna go hungry, you fucking bastard!"

"O–okay." Tsuna turns fully to his two best friends who have stopped walking, clutching the tablet to his chest. Yamamoto is standing his hands in his pockets and – strangely enough, not smiling. Tsuna's heart sort of hurts wondering what could have changed in the time since they saw one another to make his best friend, who was always so cheerful – even if it was sometimes forced – look so bored and sad. Gokudera on the other hand, is nearly _bristling_ , shaking in his anger.

Tsuna sighs.

Everything would be so much easier if Gokudera and Yamamoto liked each other as much as _he_ liked them.

"Okay," Tsuna repeats, shifting his hold on the tablet so he can reach out a hand to place it on Gokudera's arm, who almost immediately relaxes at the touch. "Hayato–kun, I'm sure Takeshi didn't mean it like that." He chances a glance at Yamamoto, who is looking at Gokudera and Tsuna's point of contact with something like _anger_ in his eyes. "Takeshi, you didn't mean it like that, did you?"

"'Course not, Tsuna." Yamamoto raises his hand to brush his knuckles against Tsuna's cheek, a soft smile on his face. "I just worry about you. It's just been so long since we talked, I –"

"I'm sorry, I'm _so_ sorry," Tsuna says, almost breathlessly, unconsciously leaning into Yamamoto's touch. Tsuna had always felt so special because his friendship with Yamamoto allowed him to see a side of the other boy that no one else did, filled with soft smiles and affectionate touches. Maybe, just maybe, Yamamoto hadn't changed completely since Tsuna had seen him last. The thought eases that tiny bit of hurt at the thought that maybe he had. "I thought you didn't want to talk to me, so I um – I –"

"Tsuna, I –" And Yamamoto tries to move in a little closer – eyes dark, but warm, only for the effort to be thwarted by Gokudera.

" _Stop_ touching Tsuna. You'll give him your stupidity." Gokudera plucks Yamamoto's hand off of Tsuna's face, holding it like it may carry some sort of disease. "Besides, we need to keep moving. We're on a timeline." The remark is very pointed, punctuated with a _look_ at Yamamoto.

Tsuna very carefully does not mention that it was Gokudera that set this all in motion by trying to pick a fight with Yamamoto. Instead, he says, "Hayato–kun is right. We should keep moving." He glances down at the tablet and sucks in a breath when he sees how much time they had wasted.

Only an hour and five minutes left to get to Kokuyo Land.

In the end, they make it to Kokuyo Land with nine minutes to spare. It feels Tsuna's backpack has gotten progressively heavier as they continued, but he'd said nothing – because he knew that once voiced, Yamamoto and Gokudera would fight over who would carry his bag and that was a can of worms he absolutely did not want to open.

The former amusement park is just as derelict as he remembers, though more overgrown than it had been in his memories. Beside him, Yamamoto and Gokudera watch the surroundings with a keen, suspicious eye – as if expecting someone to jump out and attack Tsuna.

They're sort of ridiculous, but Tsuna loves them anyway.

The door to the only standing building opens with a creak and when the three of them step into the building, the lights immediately turn on.

Which is weird, but Tsuna guesses that the lights must be motion activated.

Tsuna's a bit more concerned with all of the strange graffiti on the wall.

That and the large computer in the center of the building that looks to be made of the same material as the e–pad and is glowing the same neon blue.

"The virus has spread on Earth–113. The dead have risen. Do not visit." Yamamoto reads from the wall and any softness or good humor left over from their brief chat on the way over is _gone_ , replaced with concern that twists his expression into a much more serious one than Tsuna is used to. "Tsuna... I don't like the sound of this. Maybe we should get out of here."

"Vampires have taken over Earth–98," Gokudera reads from the opposite wall. "Only stakes can kill them." He turns to Tsuna, looking just as worried as Yamamoto. "I hate agreeing with _him_ , but maybe we should get back to your house and see what we can do there."

Tsuna shakes his head and grips the cube–tablet tighter, trying to hide how creeped out and _scared_ he is. His father had sent him to this place. He has to figure out why. "This was the only place that my father mentioned in both of his messages. That _has_ to be for a reason."

And instead of waiting for a response from his best friends, Tsuna strides towards the console in the middle of the room. This must be the mainframe his father mentioned in his message. For a moment, simply stares at it, at a complete loss on how to operate such a futuristic looking machine. His father had said to attach the e–pad to the mainframe, but when he tentatively inches closer to the machine, he can't see where it _could_ be attached.

Somewhat defeated, and doing his best not to look at the timer on the tablet which must be seconds away from zero, Tsuna sets the e–pad onto the weird little ledge that hangs over the keyboard – and watches, incredulous, as the tablet begins to melt. It's somewhat alarming to look at and for a moment, Tsuna is very sure he's accidently broken the e–pad when the computer screen flashes a somewhat ominous message, written in a bright blue–green:

 **CONNECTION ESTABLISHED.**

 **SAWADA TSUNAYOSHI.**

 **DO NOT MOVE.**

"Um," Tsuna says, turning to look at Yamamoto and Gokudera, who stand some distance behind him and don't look too pleased. "I didn't – I don't – what do I _do_?"

Yamamoto extends a hand, eyes dark as he glances between the message on the computer screen and where Tsuna stands before it, frozen. "Tsuna, come here –"

Gokudera quickly slaps Yamamoto's hand out of the air. "You fucking idiot, it doesn't say what will happen if he moves! What if he gets hurt?"

Yamamoto turns to Gokudera, nearly as mad as the other boy – which is surprising. Yamamoto almost _never_ gets angry like Gokudera does. Yamamoto's angry runs cold and often, he's smiling through the worst of it.

Yamamoto isn't smiling now.

"What if he gets hurt from standing there? What if he gets hurt and –"

The computer beeps.

Tsuna turns to look at the screen nearly as soon as he hears the sound. Behind him, both Gokudera and Yamamoto have gone quiet. The screen now has a new message:

 **SAWADA TSUNAYOSHI.**

 **IDENTITY CONFIRMED.**

 **RANDOM SELECTION OF ALT_UNI?**

"What …?" His question is barely audible. The words on the screen, bright as they are, don't make sense. "Random selection …?"

 **RANDOM SELECTION CONFIRMED.**

 **COURSE SET FOR EARTH–113.**

"Wait – I didn't mean –" Tsuna looks up at the screen in dismay, then down at the keyboard. He's sure that one of the buttons could make whatever is happening _stop_ but the buttons aren't the standard ones he's used to, red knobs and yellow levers … Tsuna is sure that if he pressed a button now, he'd only make everything worse instead of better.

"Tsuna …" Something is off about Yamamoto's voice. Far from sounding angry, Yamamoto now sounds distressed. _Really_ distressed.

For the second time in two minutes, Tsuna turns to look at Yamamoto. He's pale now, eyes fixed on the computer screen with what looks to be dawning horror. "Tsuna – we have to leave right now."

Yamamoto opens his mouth to say something else, but he's cut off when the computer beeps loudly. Tsuna turns back to the screen just in time to see timer replaces the words on the screen before him. There are five seconds left and each one feels like a lifetime.

Eventually, the timer strikes zero.

Nothing happens.

Tsuna is just about to turn to tell Yamamoto that _'see, there was no reason to worry'_ when the words are taken from him as the building starts to shake. He yelps and stumbles, instead, half tripping over the console as the tremors get worse. He ends up on the floor anyway, the quake knocking him off balance and onto his rear end.

Above him, the lights flicker before going out completely.

* * *

With the lights out, the tremors seem so much more violent. Every single shake feels like it's trying to rearrange his insides. Luckily, the quakes subside as quickly as they'd come, gentling first to a mere vibration then to stillness.

"Tsuna … are you alright?" Yamamoto's voice is hushed. It's barely audible, but in the dark, it's still jarring.

"Tsuna!" That's Gokudera, loud as ever. He sounds worried. "Are you alright?"

Tsuna can hear the whine of a generator getting louder and louder. He waits a moment to reply.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. You two are okay?"

"Yeah."

"Of course!"

* * *

The lights turn back on.

Yamamoto and Gokudera are closer than they've ever been, sitting next to one another on the dirty, dusty concrete floor. They must have instinctively grabbed onto the nearest thing when the tremors had started, which had been one another.

When they notice Tsuna staring, they make a big production of letting go of each other – or at least Gokudera does – and move toward Tsuna, who scrambled to his feet once the lights had turned back on. He stands in front of in front of the mainframe, just like he was before the earthquake. It hasn't been affected by the power outage and still glows that eerie blue–green – but its display is not the ominous message it had been just a before moments before.

Instead, the words _Earth–113_ stare back at him.

Tsuna tries to remember why the phrase sounds familiar.

It doesn't work.

"Was there supposed to be an earthquake today?" He asks instead, tearing his eyes away from the computer screen to look at Yamamoto and Gokudera, who stand just a half–step behind him. They're both covered in dust and debris, and because neither of them has regained their color, it makes them look even paler. They both look ... _scared_ , which doesn't seem right, though Tsuna supposes that the earthquake could have scared them.

"No," Gokudera answers him, but it's in the voice he uses when he's panicking, but wants to remain calm for Tsuna.

Tsuna frowns at his friend. That answer, combined with how terrified both Yamamoto and Gokudera looked ...

Well. It meant nothing good. Tsuna had no idea what had happened to make them so scared, but Tsuna began to feel uneasy anyway.

"O–oh," Tsuna says, quieter than he's been all day. "We should go check to make sure no one was hurt. Your father," he gestures to Yamamoto, who doesn't turn to look at him and instead continues to stare at the computer screen. "He was working today, wasn't he?" It was an idiotic question to ask: Yamamoto's father worked every day in some capacity. "We should go check to make sure he's alright."

Tsuna's last sentence startles Yamamoto out of his stupor. "Wait – _Tsuna_ –"

But Tsuna has already started moving. By the time he registers that Yamamoto has called him, he's almost at the door. He starts to open it before replying. "Yes?" And Tsuna didn't even know it was _possible_ , but Yamamoto and Gokudera look even more terrified at the sight of Tsuna beginning to open a door. "Are you two alright? Do you want to stay here and rest –"

Gokudera doesn't even let him finish his question. "No! No, I'll go." Then, with a glance at Yamamoto that turns into a sneer, he turns back to Tsuna, a feeble attempt at a smile on his face. " _We'll_ go."

"Okay ...?" Tsuna scrutinizes the both of them and wonders what exactly they knew that he didn't, but figures if it was important, they would have told them already. He waits for them to cross the room to the door and decides he'll talk to them about it on their walk back into town, but then he opens the door and shock steals every rational thought he has.

Because the outside is a barren wasteland.

And Namimori has been completely leveled to the ground.

* * *

The three of them stumble out of the building and something like overwhelming grief slams into Tsuna. It's muffled somehow, like maybe he's in shock.

"Nononono," he thinks he says, each _no_ barely finished before he starts again. They'd gone into the building able to see the buildings of Namimori proper in the distance, but there's nothing there anymore. Nothing except one or two of the biggest buildings unmade, like they'd been torn apart by some sort of unnatural disaster. The only life that Tsuna can see, weeds and wildflowers and grass, extends only about a half–meter or so beyond the building. Beyond that, everything has died with patches of dirt peeking through sparse yellowed grass where before it had been overgrown and ungroomed.

"What _happened_?" Yamamoto's voice is raw with grief. Just the sound of it causes something inside Tsuna to die.

"I'm sure everyone is fine," Tsuna says with the same unchecked naivety that allowed him to believe that three weeks into his mother's disappearance, she would return. The same naivety that made the truth hurt worse when she'd eventually been declared dead.

The same naivety that Tsuna isn't even sure _he_ believes, not anymore. But he can't help but try to make things better when Yamamoto needs it.

"We just – we need to head back. They need our help." He tries to smile at Yamamoto and Gokudera, but it's a futile effort. It probably looks more like a grimace than a grin.

"Yeah," Yamamoto says and Gokudera echoes the sentiment.

Neither of them sound very convinced.

* * *

Namimori is the only home Tsuna has ever known. The same is true for Yamamoto and even Gokudera, even if he had been raised somewhere else. They had all found a home in one another and a place within the community.

It was hard to believe that was all gone now.

Tsuna shakes his head and tries to dispel that thought. He didn't know for certain that Namimori had been destroyed. And right now, he can't think in absolutes, not when he doesn't know the facts.

But it's hard not to catastrophize, especially when, as the three of them are walking to Namimori proper, neither Yamamoto or Gokudera speak. Tsuna tries to think of something to say to take his mind off of whatever the hell is going on.

It doesn't work.

All he can focus on is how drastically the world has changed since they'd entered that abandoned building not thirty minutes ago. What had happened? What had gone wrong?

Tsuna doesn't know.

He scrambles once more for some way to break the awkward, tense silence. Again, he's thwarted.

But then he sees something in the not-so-far distance.

People?

And they're moving toward the three of them!

"Takeshi, Hayato-kun – _look!_ Someone is coming this way!" His frantic pointing and shouting only serves to make Yamamoto and Gokudera tenser.

"Tsuna," Yamamoto looks at the approaching figures with something like determination in his gaze. Tsuna has only seen that look one other time: when he had fought back against Tsuna's bullies in middle school after they had hit him, even at the cost of a broken hand which had prevented Yamamoto from playing the rest of the baseball season. "We have to get back to Kokuyo Land."

"What?"

"Tsuna," Gokudera's voice is quiet, but firm. "We need to go."

Tsuna looks between them, confused and scared. Hadn't they agreed to check for survivors? Why were they so eager to turn back at the sight of what they had set out for?

What did they know that Tsuna didn't?

Tsuna opens his mouth to ask that exact question but stops short when he realizes that sometime during their conversation, the people he'd seen in the distance were there.

And pointing weapons at Tsuna and his friends.

* * *

Time stops, if only for a moment.

Tsuna acts on instinct alone and manages to shove both Yamamoto and Gokudera behind him. He must look ridiculous, shoving two men so much taller than himself behind him, but as soon as he does so, the weapons are immediately lowered.

"Tsuna ...?" One of the would-be attackers asks in a strangely familiar voice, the bat they'd held clattering to the ground.

"Y-yes?" Tsuna replies. He takes a step forward, but is immediately pulled back by both Yamamoto _and_ Gokudera. Tsuna doesn't know why they bother: even if Tsuna can't see the faces of the people in front of them, covered in some kind of scarf-shawl that hides the lower half of their faces and hair while goggles hide their eyes, they can't be _bad_ people. Not if they know Tsuna.

(Well. They could be his childhood bullies. But Tsuna doesn't know why they would sound like _that_ , all grief-stricken and such, if they were.)

"Yes," Tsuna repeats, steadier this time. "U-um. Who are you?"

Silence.

Tsuna thinks that maybe they haven't heard him and almost asks his question again, when the two strangers burst into action, tearing the cloth from around their face and throwing the goggles to the ground.

Tsuna blinks. Once – _twice_ – thrice ... but the sight in front of him doesn't change. But it _has_ to be a hallucination.

Because Yamamoto and Gokudera are standing right in front of him, where their would-be attackers once stood.

* * *

Fin ... (for now)

* * *

The next chapter will have more of Earth-113 and interaction between 113!Yamamoto&Gokudera and Tsuna + the original Yama&Goku. Where is 113!Tsuna? You'll have to find out when I update next time.

* * *

You can follow me on tumblr at lunaerum! A link is in my profile bio! You can ask me about this fic and others.

Please R&R! I would love to know your thoughts on this idea!


End file.
